Throughout the present document, the term “insert” denotes an accessory of the window, in particular an accessory of elongate shape, but does not designate a vehicle body element.
To improve the esthetics of certain windows, especially windows used in the automotive field, it is known to employ trims that usually consist of profiled elements clip-fastened onto clips that are attached to a profiled sealing bead, these being made for example of a flexible polymer, which bead is overmolded onto each window, especially on the periphery thereof.
Thus, international application WO 2005/033526 teaches a system for clip-fastening a profiled trim for a profiled sealing bead using a flexible clip having a simple first boss, intended to be inserted into a simple first groove of the profiled sealing bead, and a more complex, hook-shaped second boss intended to be inserted into a likewise more complex groove of the profiled sealing bead by deforming the flexible clip. The clip is thus hooked onto the profiled sealing bead. However, a pinching effect of the profiled sealing bead is obtained by making the distance between the two bosses of the clip slightly shorter than that between the two grooves of the profiled sealing bead.
To fasten the profiled trim, this is firstly inserted into a boss of the clip, and then the clip is again deformed so as to enable the profiled trim to pass above a projection of the profiled sealing bead.
However, it turns out that this deformation is exactly contrary to the deformation that allows the clip to be attached to the profiled sealing bead.
Once the flexible clip has been fitted, it is thus permanently subjected to opposing tensile forces that attempt both to keep it hooked onto the profiled sealing bead and to keep the profiled trim clipped onto the clip.
When used on a vehicle, such a system has the drawback that the vibrations to which the profiled sealing bead is subjected during operation of the vehicle, particularly on a bumpy road, cause the sealing bead to be deformed, running the risk eventually of the clip becoming detached, resulting in the loss of the profiled trim.
Also known, from international application WO 2007/003823, is an intermediate fastening device of the type described above.
According to that document, the cooperating upstream part comprises at least one protruding male element or at least one hollow female element, which element cooperates with a corresponding hollow female element or with a corresponding protruding male element respectively, provided in the profiled sealing bead, said hollow female element having the internal dimensions at least in part smaller than the external dimensions of said protruding male element.
This cooperation is thus of the “mortice and tenon” type with a rubbing effect between at least part of the surfaces of the elements.
One important advantage of this device with respect to the previous one lies in the reliability of the fastening system: it enables the profiled trim to be reliably held in place, including under extreme, especially vibrational, conditions.
However, this system complicates the design of the profiled sealing bead and necessitates designing a particular profiled sealing bead having particular male or female regions.
In particular, this system requires the clip to be positioned very precisely in order for the upstream cooperating part to cooperate correctly with the corresponding part provided in the profiled sealing bead.
Moreover, U.S. Pat. No. 3,869,760, teaches a clip having resilient legs, these legs being splayed apart in order to pass a boss into which the end of the legs penetrates when an extraction force is applied on the clip.
Furthermore, International Patent Application WO 2008/084076 teaches a profiled trim clip-fastening system for a profiled sealing bead, this profiled sealing bead having regions provided for receiving elements for retaining the clip, these regions being in the form of holes for retaining the arrowhead-shaped retention elements of the clip.
In order to provide the cooperation between the clip and the profiled sealing bead, it is then necessary for the clip to be positioned precisely with respect to the profiled sealing bead in order for the retention elements of the clip to correctly penetrate into the means for receiving the profiled sealing bead.
All these devices for fastening a trim onto a window have the drawback of employing at least one intermediate element which is physically separate from the profiled seal: it is therefore necessary to provide a certain mounting time for mounting the intermediate element on the profiled sealing bead. Furthermore, this mounted assembly is removable so that it is difficult to guarantee that the intermediate element remains fastened to the profiled sealing bead for several tens of years.
Moreover, the prior art teaches, especially French patent application FR 2 577 483 and German patent application DE 34 32 592, a fastening element having teeth located opposite one another, as may be seen in particular in the cross-sectional figures, for fastening an insert. These systems do actually prevent the insert from being pulled off, but they are not entirely satisfactory as they do not lock the insert sufficiently securely in the three dimensions in space.
In particular, on studying document FR 2 577 483, it is obvious that the rotation along the curvature of the insert is not sufficiently prevented: in document DE 34 32 592, this rotation is prevented only by a very complicated profile of the sealing bead.